Long exposure
 

Several years ago I bought a 10 stop neutral density filter to do some sea scape stuff but never had much success. We've had a string of epic sunsets the past few day so I headed out to a nearby lake to try my luck with some long exposures.

This was a 30 second exposure at f5.6. I'd planned to shoot at F11 or so but my remote shutter release wasn't working so I was limited to 30 seconds and had to open the aperture to keep the ISO at 100. Wish I'd made it to this spot a few days ago as there were some spectacular sunsets.

So this was just a trial. It's a different look to be sure, but I like the technique a lot. Thoughts/comments?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...psq6wohtno.jpg

First things first. I like the photo. The only thing that bugs me is the tree touching the horizon. And I shouldn't say it bugs me but my eye went RIGHT to it.

ND filters. I've got one also although mine is a variable with the rotating front ring. It provides anywhere from 2 to 8 stops of light control. They work OK but I've gotten some very odd and inconsistent metering off it in the 7-8 stop range. It also produces some weird artifact from time to time. I've had the best luck dropping my ISO to 50 and keeping the filter at no more than 6. At 7-8 it's a roll of the dice. You never know what you'll be getting.

Love this pic. I noticed the clouds and sky first. Did not even notice the bush Thomas mention until I read his post. Not distracting to me.

Were the clouds moving fast to get that effect of stretching?

Thanks Thomas. You're spot on with regard to the tree - it bugged me too and I appreciate you confirming how distracting it is before I post it to my local FB group. Unfortunately all the keeper candidates have the same issue.

I got a late start on this trip and was planning to just scout the location though I took my gear. As I was driving there, the sky starting looking really good and was still decent when I arrived. So I just grabbed a spot and set up. I was shooting manual and being a bit math challenged, it took me a while to get past my miscalculated exposure compensation. With all the fumbling around, I didn't pay enough attention to the composition. And a pox on Canon for not having an articulating display on the back. Makes it difficult to review shots when doing low angle stuff.

Most of my filters are 100mm wide and designed for a Lee filter holder, though I just have a slightly cheaper knockoff from Hitech. It's a bit unwieldy but is nice when using graduated NDs. My 10 stop is also a Hitech but smaller and only fits a cheapo Cokin holder, which vignettes when shooting really wide. Luckily the guy next to me loaned me his Lee holder and 10 stop for a few shots and this one was the result. I had to do some color correction but that seems to be the case with most all NDs, even the high dollar Lee stuff. I think I'm going to order one of these today. While on the cheap side, it seems to get good reviews on color. Better than the Lee according to some.

https://www.amazon.com/ND1000-Square-Neutral-Density-Optical/dp/B00JYFN9YG
Almost forgot. Drove to the lake with the top down... 75 degrees or so. :cert:

The tree is a small detail, but like Thomas, my eye was drawn to it. Too bad it wasn't drawn to it while I was shooting.

The clouds were moving some but not really that fast. I was a little surprised there was so much movement in the shot. It was only a 30 second exposure. I was planning a much longer exposure but my remote shutter release was messed up and I couldn't use Bulb mode so was limited to 30 seconds shooting manual.

By the way, this was taken at Murrell Park on the north side of Lake Grapevine near the boat ramp. Admission is free for day use. Perfect spot for winter sunsets.

Nice pic! :seasix:

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...12a524f49f.jpg

This is mine. 77mm.

Kinda wish I'd gone that route, but the filter holder rigs work well with gradient NDs and I have a set of those. Anxious to receive the new 10 stopper so I can use my wide angle. The one I'm using doesn't work below 28mm or so on a full frame.

Okay, so I ran back out to the lake this afternoon as the sunset forecast was pretty good. Was stuck with just my 24-105 as I can't use this10 stop ND on my wide angle.

So the composition still isn't very good, but at least I didn't stab the horizon with a dead tree. Cropped too severe on the left but too much vignetting from the filter holder.

The light wasn't near as good as yesterday, but starting to at least figure out the process to do these. New larger 10 stop ND should be here Thursday. Meanwhile, this could use some more work but tired of messing with it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...psl5wvoy8p.jpg

And here's a link to the sunset forecast site I use.

https://sunsetwx.com/view/?id=0

And got the Photoshop tree saw out and did some pruning.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...ps2ffmfcio.jpg

very nice :seasix:

Excellent! I like colors of the picture and I like composition, no odd details at all.
I'm not very good at photography. Is an example of HDR image? https://aurorahdr.com/what-is-high-d...ge-photography

No HDR on these - just long exposures using a neutral density filter. I've used HDR in the past, still occasional use it, and while it's can be a very useful technique it's sometimes difficult to keep a natural look.

If I can offer a novice opinion;
The motion blur in the clouds of all the pics kills it for me. Below the horizon (especially in both pics of post #8) are fantastic though. Both are soft, with the 1st pic being easier on the eyes in that regard. Now the big blocky cloud in the first pic, didn't have as much blur. I guess because there was less detail in it and to me it seemed just the right amount. It also subdued the light over all in the picture. But of course, you couldn't get the sun into it. And what takes away from the pic is where the picture gets busy toward the top where the clouds thin out. The second pic has the sun, which is great, but it along with the busy clouds tend to overpower the picture. What would have been really great would have been if that big cloud covered the top part of the picture, with enough clear sky behind it to expose the sun on the horizon. I bet that would have balanced out nicely on all levels. Still, you can only work with what you get at the moment, and each second is a different picture. I still really like that first pic in post 8
:cheers: